David Norris (Independent)

I feel weak as a result of it. There is a section of the budget dealing with health. It is fine that all this money is being spent, but there should be an audit. What I am interested in is not how much money is being spent but whether it is being spent wisely.

Let me give an example to the Minister of State. I spoke to a person the other day who came to see me about an aspect of the health services. As a result of lobbying, a particular service was made available to the public. The first thing to happen was that four managers were appointed. There were to be three staff to deliver the service, but they were stuck because of the recruitment embargo. The delivery of this service has been sanctioned, the managers have been installed, but there is to be no service. The health system must be strenuously audited to prevent events such as this.

There was also mention of housing. I welcome that there will be a reduction in stamp duty in the lower end of the housing market. I also heard the Minister mention affordable housing. In his conclusion he mentioned a "challenging backdrop" and had a little checklist of features of the budget. These are all pretty good, and I agree with Senator Quinn that the budget meets the challenge. The checklist states that the budget "supports the incomes of the vulnerable". The Minister seems to have done something there. It also states: "It keeps taxes low for working people." As somebody with a reasonable amount of money, I cannot disagree that the less well-off should be more favoured. I will initial the report issued by the headmaster, Dr. Feargal Quinn, but I will say again that I want more horse sense in the small areas I have outlined.